Armor assembly including multiple armor plates

ABSTRACT

In some example, the disclosure provides armor assembly designs utilizing multiple solid armor plates and one or more coupling elements, such as, e.g., high-strength ropes, to couple the solid armor plates to each other. For example, the solid armor plates may be attached to one another and held in position via high-strength ropes for form a discontinuous armor layer. The armor assemblies may include multiple layer arrangements of the solid armor plates that provide substantially complete coverage of a surface when the multiple discontinuous layers are combined. Ropes or other coupling elements may be used to horizontally connect plates together within the same discontinuous layer of armor plates and ropes may also be used to vertically connect plates in different armor layers. In some example, the armor assembly may be highly flexible and breathable to provide body armor that may be comfortably worn. In some examples, armor assemblies may be adapted for use as vehicle armor or other armor applications.

This application also claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional ApplicationNo. 61/212,657, filed Apr. 14, 2009. This application also claims thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/214,103, filed Apr. 20,2009. This application also claims the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 61/216,100, filed May 13, 2009. The entire content ofeach of these provisional applications is incorporated herein byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosure relates to protective materials that can be used as bodyarmor against ballistic threats or knife threats.

BACKGROUND

In some examples, flexible body armor designs utilize many layers offabric formed of high-tensile strength yarns. While such materials canbe effective at stopping hand gun rounds, the flexible body armor may beuncomfortable to the wearer. Factors contributing to discomfort to thewearer may include lack of breathability, weight, and/or stiffness ofthe body armor.

SUMMARY

In general, the disclosure relates to armor assemblies including aplurality of protective armor plates coupled to one another by via ropesor other coupling elements. The protective armor plates may be arrangedadjacent to one another to form a discontinuous armor layer. Armorplates adjacent to one another may be directly coupled to one anothervia ropes or other coupling elements throughout the assembly such thatsubstantially all armor plates in the assembly are coupled to all otherplates either directly or indirectly. A gap portion in the discontinuouslayer may be defined by adjacent neighboring plates. The discontinuouslayer formed plurality of coupled armor plates may provide an armorassembly that provide protection against, for example, firearm-firedprojectiles, shrapnel from explosions, and/or weapons-grade knives overthe areas covered by armor plates and while also provide a degree offlexibility and breathability via the gaps between the armor plates.

In some examples, multiple discontinuous layers each formed via aplurality of armor plates connected to each other via ropes or othercoupling elements are formed. Adjacent layers may overly one anothersuch that the armor plates of one layer cover at least a portion of thegap portions of an adjacent layer. In this manner, the multiplediscontinuous layers may provide for increased coverage area of armorplates relative to the gap areas in the assembly while also providingflexibility and breathability for the armor assembly. In one embodiment,a series of three or more discontinuous layers each formed of aplurality of armor plates coupled to each other via rope or othercoupling element form an armor assembly in which substantially no gapsextend through all layers of the armor assembly along a substantiallylinear path, thereby providing armor protection over substantially theentire surface of the armor assembly while maintaining flexibilityand/or breathability of the armor assembly.

In one embodiment, the disclosure is directed to an armor assemblycomprising a plurality of armor plates; and at least one couplingelement that couples the plurality of armor plates to each other,wherein the plurality of armor plates are coupled to each other via theat least one coupling element at discrete locations on each armor plateto form a discontinuous armor layer.

In another embodiment, the disclosure is directed to an armor assemblycomprising a first discontinuous armor layer including of a firstplurality of armor plates; a second discontinuous armor layer includingof a second plurality of armor plates; a third discontinuous layer armorincluding of a third plurality of armor plates; and at least onecoupling element that couples the first, second, and third plurality ofarmor plates to each other to form at least a portion of the armorassembly.

In another embodiment, the disclosure is directed to a method comprisingcoupling a plurality of armor plates to each other via at least onecoupling element, wherein the plurality of armor plates are coupled toeach other via the at least one coupling element at discrete locationson each armor plate to form a discontinuous armor layer.

The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are set forth inthe accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features,objects, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thedescription and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1A and 1B are conceptual diagrams illustrating, from a plan view,a portion of an example armor assembly including a plurality of examplearmor plates connected to each other via example coupling elements.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example armor plate fromthe assembly of FIGS. 1A and 1B.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating two example armor platescoupled to one another from a plan view.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view theassembly of FIG. 1A along line A-A.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram illustrating, from a plan view, anexample assembly including example first and second discontinuous layerseach formed of example armor plates.

FIG. 6 is another conceptual diagram illustrating, from a plan view, anexample assembly including example first and second discontinuous layerseach formed of example armor plates.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example assemblyincluding example first and second discontinuous layers from a sideview.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armorplate.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are conceptual diagrams illustrating another examplearmor plate.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams illustrating an exampleassembly including three example armor plates coupled to each other.

FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram illustrating another example assemblyincluding three example armor plates coupled to each other.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armorplate.

FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example assemblyincluding the example armor plate of FIGS. 12A and 12B.

FIG. 14 is a conceptual diagram illustrating air flow through theexample assembly of FIG. 13.

FIGS. 15A and 15B are conceptual diagrams illustrating an exampleprocess for forming an example armor plate.

FIGS. 16 and 17 are conceptual diagrams illustrating example armorplates.

FIGS. 18A-E are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armor platefrom various viewpoints.

FIG. 19 is a conceptual diagram illustrating three example armor platescoupled to each other.

FIGS. 20A-D are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armor platefrom various viewpoints.

FIGS. 21A-D are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example assemblyincluding multiple example discontinuous layers formed of example armorplates.

FIGS. 22A-C are conceptual diagrams illustrating another exampleassembly including multiple example discontinuous layers formed ofexample armor plates.

FIGS. 23A-C are conceptual diagrams illustrating another example armorplate from various viewpoints.

FIGS. 24A and 24B are conceptual diagrams illustrating another examplearmor plate.

FIG. 25 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion of anexample armor assembly.

FIG. 26 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofanother example armor assembly.

FIG. 27 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofanother example armor assembly.

FIG. 28 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofanother example armor assembly.

FIGS. 29A-C are conceptual diagrams illustrating various examplediscontinuous armor layers on an example portion of another examplearmor assembly.

FIGS. 30A and 30B are conceptual diagrams illustrating various examplediscontinuous armor layers on an example portion of another examplearmor assembly.

FIG. 31 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofexample armor assemblies from a cross-sectional view.

FIGS. 32-34 are conceptual diagrams of example isolated hole covers.

FIGS. 35 and 36 are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example portionof example armor assemblies from cross-sectional views.

FIG. 37 is a conceptual diagram of an example isolated hole cover.

FIG. 38 is a conceptual diagram of an example ring from the exampleisolated hole cover of FIG. 37.

FIGS. 39A and 39B are conceptual diagrams illustrating the exampleimpact of a bullet at a portion of an example armor assembly.

FIGS. 40A and 40B are conceptual diagrams illustrating the exampleimpact of a bullet at a portion of another example armor assembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In general, the disclosure relates to armor assemblies including aplurality of protective armor plates coupled to one another by ropes orother coupling elements. The protective armor plates may be arrangedadjacent to one another and along substantially the same plane to form adiscontinuous armor layer. Armor plates adjacent to one another may bedirectly coupled to one another via ropes or other coupling elementsthroughout the assembly such that substantially all armor plates in theassembly are coupled to all other plates either directly or indirectly.A gap extending through the discontinuous layer may be defined byadjacent neighboring plates. As will be described further below, thediscontinuous layer formed of a plurality of coupled armor plates mayprovide an armor assembly that provide protection against, for example,projectiles from firearms, shrapnel from explosions, and/orweapons-grade knives over the areas covered by armor plates and whilealso providing a degree of flexibility and breathability via the gapsbetween the armor plates.

In some examples, multiple discontinuous layers each formed via aplurality of armor plates connected to each other via ropes or othercoupling elements are formed. The ropes or other coupling elements mayattach adjacent plates in the same layer and/or adjacent plates inadjacent layers. Adjacent layers may overly one another such that thearmor plates of one layer cover at least a portion of the gap portionsof the neighboring layer. In this manner, the multiple discontinuouslayers may provide for increased coverage area of armor plates relativeto the gap areas in the assembly while also providing flexibility andbreathability for the armor assembly.

In one embodiment, a series of three or more discontinuous layers eachformed of a plurality of armor plates coupled to each other via rope orother coupling element form an armor assembly in which substantially nogaps extend through all layers of the armor assembly along asubstantially linear path, thereby providing armor protection oversubstantially the entire surface of the armor assembly. Such an armorassembly may maintain a desired degree of flexibility and/orbreathability, e.g., as compared to a single, relatively inflexiblelarge armor plate having approximately the same size of the armorassembly and/or a body armor article formed of multiple layers of wovenfabric.

Some multiple layer woven fabric-based body armor assemblies stop bulletpenetration by arresting or capturing the bullet with yarns directly infront of the bullet at the site of impact. The energy required tostraighten these strands of fabric and to displace them from the planeof the fabric acts to dissipate the energy of the bullet. Woven fabricbased-assemblies also spread the incoming energy to strands of fabric inthe layers below the impacted surface. Upon impact, the bullet is alsoplastically deformed by the fabric resistance, helping to distribute theforce over a larger area and engaging more strands of fabric in thelower layers. However, due to the relatively high density of the wovenfabric, such body armor may provide only a minimal amount ofbreathability through the fabric.

Conversely, example armor assemblies such as those described in thisdisclosure may include solid armor plates having an area larger than thebullet cross section at impact for the dissipation of the bullet'senergy. At the same time, the ropes or other coupling elementsconnecting the armor plates provide a mechanism for beneficiallyspreading the incoming energy over a larger area, which may ultimatelyreduce the pressure applied on the inner surface of the protective armorstructure to a sub-lethal level.

For sharp objects, such as knifes and ice picks, multiple layer wovenfabric-based body armor tends to perform poorly because the point of thesharp object “slips” between the strands of the fabric such that thewoven fabric based-body armor does not supply adequate resistance tostop the penetration of the sharp object. Unlike that of woven fabricmaterial, the solid armor plates of an armor assembly may prevent thepenetration of the point and may also engage the resistance of theneighboring plates via the connecting ropes. The armor plate materialcan be selected such that the armor assembly provides protection againstbullets, shrapnel, and/or knife threats.

In some example armor assemblies of this disclosure, because there aregaps between the solid armor plates which are coupled together via ropesor other coupling elements, there is a relatively large volume of emptyspace in the assembly structure corresponding to the gaps betweenadjacent guard plates. This gap space may provide increasedbreathability and allow for bulk air-flow through the armor assembly aswell as also allow moisture to travel through armor assembly. Inaddition to providing suitable breathability, the armor assembly may beflexible and supple because the solid, discrete plates may be coupledtogether via a flexible coupling element, such as, a flexible rope. Incontrast with multi-layer woven fabric-based body armor, someembodiments of the armor assemblies described in this disclosureeffectively separate the functions of penetration resistance viaprotective plates and the spreading of the impact energy to theneighboring structure via the coupling elements used to couple the armorplates together. Therefore, the embodiments of the body armor assemblycan be made lighter than some multilayer woven fabric-based armor bodyarmors. In some embodiments, armor assemblies of the disclosure are morecomfortable to wear compared to that of multiple layer wovenfabric-based body armor assemblies since embodiment of armor assembliesdescribed herein may be more flexible, lighter in weight and configuredto provide for a suitable level of air flow through the assembly.

FIGS. 1A and 1B are conceptual diagrams illustrating, from a plan view,a portion of example armor assembly 10 including a plurality of examplearmor plates 12 a-12 i (collectively referred to as armor plates 12)coupled to each other via coupling element 14. FIG. 1B illustrates amagnified view of plates 12 a, 12 b, 12 d, and 12 e. For ease ofillustration, only coupling elements 14 used to directly connectadjacent edges of plates 12 a, 12 b, 12 d, and 12 e are shown in FIG.1B.

Armor assembly 10 may provide protection against, e.g., projectiles fromfirearms, shrapnel from explosions, and/or weapons-grade knives. In someexamples, such an assembly may be worn adjacent to portions of the bodyof a person to function as body armor. In other examples, assembly 10can also be designed for use as vehicle armor that protects against, forexample, improvised explosive devices. However, other uses for assembly10 are contemplated, especially uses in which assembly 10 is utilized toprovide protection from ballistic threats.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, armor plates 12 are arranged and coupled toone another via coupling element 14 in assembly 10 to form adiscontinuous layer of armor material. Adjacent edges of neighboringplates 12 define gap region 18 which forms a void space that extendsthrough the discontinuous layer formed by plates 12 and coupling element14. In this manner, armor plates 12 and coupling element 14 may becharacterized as forming a discontinuous armor layer having discretearmor plates rather than a continuous armor layer without any gaps orother breaks in the armor layer. The configuration of plates 12 as adiscontinuous armor layer allows for assembly 10 to exhibit greaterflexibility than an armor assembly including only a single armor plateformed of a continuous armor layer even in cases in which thecomposition of the armor plates for each assembly is substantially thesame.

Coupling element 14 mechanically couples adjacent plates 12 to oneanother at discrete locations on the perimeter of plates 12. All plates12 in assembly are connected or attached to one another via couplingelement 14, whether it be directly (e.g., in the case of two individualplates that are directly adjacent to one another) or indirectly (e.g.,in the case of two individual plates that are separated by one or moreintervening plates). Coupling element 14 in assembly 10 may be a singlecontinuous coupling element or a plurality of individual couplingelements. In one example, coupling element 14 may include one or moreropes that attached adjacent plates 12 in assembly 10 to one another. Aswill be described further below, coupling elements 14 may additionallyor alternatively connect one or more of plates 12 to armor plate(s) fromone or more adjacent discontinuous armor layers overlying thediscontinuous layer formed by plates 12. In this manner, couplingelement 14 may connect two or more armor plates 12 within the samediscontinuous armor layer (referred to at some points herein ashorizontal attachment) and/or to connect one or more armor plates 12 toone or more armor plates in one or more adjacent discontinuous armorlayers (referred to herein at some points as vertical attachment).

Coupling element 14 may allow for some degree of movement of plates 12relative to another while still providing for attachment to one another.In such a configuration, in the case of a ballistic impact, one or moreindividual plates 12 may act to arrest an immediate penetration of theimpacting object (e.g., a firearm fired bullet), and the impact forcemay be quickly spread to a much larger area via the composite assemblyof coupling elements 14 and plates 12 allowing the non-destructivedissipation of the initial energy. Because the coupling elements 14allow plates 12 to move relative to each other, assembly 10 may beflexible compared to a single continuous armor layer formed ofsubstantially the same material as plates 12. Further, the spacingbetween plates 12, armor assembly 10 allows for the bulk flow of airthrough assembly 10 (e.g., from the bottom surface to the top surface).As such, in some embodiments, assembly 10 may be a relatively flexible,breathable armor that is comfortable to wear.

Unlike that of an arrangement in which multiple armor plates areattached to the surface of the same woven fabric substrate to be fixedrelative to each other, coupling element 14 attaches to each of plates12 a-i at discrete locations dispersed about the perimeter of each platerather than forming a continuous fabric layer that spans across gaps 18separating plates at substantially all locations along the perimeter ofadjacent plates. In this manner, air flow through gaps 18 is not impededby the coupling elements, or at least not impeded to the degree thatwould present with a continuous woven fabric substrate.

In the examples of FIGS. 1A, 1B, 2, and 3, each individual plates 12includes a plurality of apertures 16 (only a single aperture is labeledin FIGS. 1A, 1B, 2, and 3) extending through the thickness of plate fromthe top surface to the bottom surface. To directly connect two or moreplates to one another, coupling element 14 may be extended through atleast one aperture 16 of each individual armor plates 12 and may thensecured (e.g., tied or otherwise anchored) within the respectiveapertures 16. To increase the strength of the attachment between plates12 in assembly 10, the number of apertures may be increased to increasenumber of distinct points on the perimeter of each plates engaged withcoupling element 14. In FIG. 1B coupling element 14 diagonally couplesall four corners of plates 12 a-d.

As shown in FIGS. 1A, 1B, 2, and 3, each armor plate 12 may include aplurality of apertures 16 dispersed around the perimeter of each plateon substantially all sides. Coupling element 14 may be extended throughone or more of apertures from each plate to attach plates 12 together.Coupling element 14 may extend only through a single aperture for twoplates to form a loop that secure the two plates at the discretelocations of the respective apertures. In some examples, couplingelement 14 may spiral or otherwise extend through a plurality ofapertures in each of multiple individual plates to connect plates 12 toeach other. Apertures 16 may be aligned in a row maintaining asubstantially uniform distance from the edge of plates 12. In FIG. 3,plates 12 a and 12 b include a plurality of apertures at varyingdistances from the edge of plates 12 a, 12 b to form multiple rows ofapertures.

In one embodiment, two-dimensionally arrayed armor plates are tiedtogether using stranded fibers by looping the fibers through holes inthe plates. As described below, coupling element 14 may be wire, string,yarn, rope or other elongated, substantially one-dimensional structure.In one embodiment, braided-strand ropes are used. The ropes can extendacross the width of the plate in a spiral from one hole to the next andone or many ropes can be used in each hole. By spiraling from hole tohole, a single rope can be used to connect multiple pairs of platestogether. Alternatively, a single rope can tie a single pair of platestogether with multiple passes through each hole. The number of ropes andthe thickness of the ropes can be adjusted to give the optimalperformance on a per weight basis.

Other techniques for connecting plates 12 to one another via couplingelements 14 are contemplated. For example, coupling elements 14, such asropes, may be embedded into two more of plates 12 at discrete locationsabout the perimeter of two or more adjacent plates to attach the platestogether. In other examples, ropes (or other coupling elements) may bethreaded through one or more apertures extending through the length ofthe plate (e.g., a direction substantially orthogonal to the majorsurface of plates 12) with knots or other obstructions in the ropes torestrict to the movement of the individual armor plates along the lengthof rope. In some examples, plates 12 may be adhered to a rope net thatacts to attach plates 12 a-i to each other.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating example armor plate 12 efrom the assembly of FIGS. 1A and 1B. As shown FIG. 2, armor plate 12 eincludes eighteen individual apertures 16 evenly dispersed about theperimeter of plate 12 e. Each aperture 16 extends through armor plate 12e from the top surface to the bottom surface, and coupling element 14extends through aperture 16 as well as another aperture in a neighboringplate (not shown in FIG. 2) of assembly 10 to connect armor plate 12 eto at least one other armor plate of assembly 10.

Solid armor plate 12 e can be made from any high strength hard orreasonably hard material. Hard ceramics such as boron carbide or otherlightweight ceramics may be used. Less hard, but still rigid, compositematerials can also be used. Advanced composites comprising carbonnanotubes, other nano-particles or micro-particles could also be usedfor the plate material. Layers of polyethylene (e.g. Dyneema® orSpectra®) or aramid (e.g. Kevlar®) can be hardened through the choice ofbinder used to hold the layers together and these hardened layers canform the plate material. In one embodiment Dyneema® HB50, whichcomprises multiple layers of unidirectional polyethylene yarns heldtogether with a binder, is used as the plate material. In otherexamples, multiple layers of unidirectional aramid fibers may be heldtogether with a binder to form plates 12.

Suitable binder materials may include polymer resin materials thatprovide for a suitable resin matrix. In some examples, the binder resinmatrix should transfer the stress load maximally to stronger ultra highmolecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers. The overall bond at thefiber-matrix interface is an aggregate of any chemical bonds formed,dipole-attraction bonds such as van der Waals and hydrogen bonding, andmechanical bonds such as interlocking. As the composite material bendsafter the time of impact, the primary stress the material experiencesare tensional (i.e. stretching), except for the localized area in theimmediate vicinity of the impact point, which primarily experiencecompression forces. In order to transfer the maximum amount of stressload from the weaker matrix to the stronger fiber, the integrity of theoverall fiber-binder matrix bond has to be maintained as long aspossible while both materials are being stretched and deformed undertension.

If both materials experience the same level of strain displacement whilethey are stretched and deformed under tension, the much higher Young'smodulus of the fibers means that it will bear the higher percentage ofstress load, thus achieving the intended goal of transferring as muchload as possible from the weaker matrix to the stronger fibers.Therefore it is desirable for the matrix material's elongation at breakto be higher than the fiber, to ensure that the matrix is able tosurvive the same degree of strain as the fiber before it fractures. Inaddition, the Young's modulus of the matrix should also be considerablylower than the fiber. The very high loading rate of a high-velocitybullet also may cause materials to behave more glass-like than theywould under normal static load or low-velocity impact conditions. Thus,a polymer for the matrix may be sufficiently ductile and soft ratherthan stiff and brittle in order to avoid fracturing.

Example binder materials may include thermoplastics, such as, e.g.,polyester, polyamides (i.e. nylon), polyvinyls, polyolefins, andpolyurethane, elastomeric block copolymers such aspolyisoprene-polyethylene-butylene-polystyrene block copolymers orpolytyrene-polyisoprene-polystyrene block copolymers, and/or thermosets,such as, e.g., toughened or ductile epoxies or phenolics, unsaturatedpolyesters, and vinyl esters.

Metallic alloys are another category of material that can be used inconstructing the solid plates. In some examples, the metal alloy mayexhibit at least greater than 40% elongation at break. If the elongationat break is appreciably lower than this, the metal does not have enoughductility to plastically deform to a large degree, the main method ofenergy dissipation, without fracturing. Example metal alloys may include302 stainless steel, 304 stainless steel, Gall-Tough® toughenedstainless steel, Haynes® 25 and 188 metal alloys, Allvac® nickelsuperalloys, and/or Beryllium copper alloys.

In choosing materials for the plate material of body armor, materialshaving a relatively high degree high degree of toughness per weight maybe preferred. The toughness of a material is associated with the amountof energy that a material can absorb before fracturing. Toughness can bemeasured as the area under a material's stress-strain curve. Toughnesscan also depend on the rate of change of the applied stress. Thus, therate of change of the energy applied by the threat may also an importantconsideration when designing an armor system and selecting material forforming armor plates and/or coupling elements.

The choice of materials for the various armor plates described in thisdisclosure, such as, e.g., plates 12 and armor plates forming otherdiscontinuous layers of one or more armor assemblies described herein,may be determined by the threat that the armor assembly is desired toprotect against. For example, for knife stab body armors, the materialchosen can exceed a certain minimum hardness threshold—if the materialis too soft, the hardened steel knife blade penetrates too deeply, e.g.,to pass the NIJ Stab Body Armor requirements. On a per weight basis,nylon 6/6, ballistic grade polycarbonate (Lexan®), nylon 6/6 reinforcedwith S-fiberglass and Garolite can be effective for such protection. Forballistic body armors designed to protect up to NIJ Level IIIA, platesmade from laminations of UHMWPE and/or aramid fibers can be effective.Because the tips of bullets specified for NIJ Level IIIA and below arecomposed of softer metals such as lead or copper alloys that deformrelatively easily, the low hardness of UHMWPE and aramid materials doesnot hinder their performance in stopping these projectiles. However forNIJ Level III bullets that employ a significantly harder steel tip, orNIJ Level IV armor-piercing bullets that can employ very hard,high-density metal tips such as tungsten carbide or depleted uranium,the hardness of the plate material plays a much larger role and softerUHMWPE and aramid materials may be less effective as such materials maybe selected for NIJ Level IIIA and below applications.

In some examples, for cases such as NIJ Ballistics Level III, IV asdescribed above, or NIJ Stab Body Armor, where the hardness of the platematerial plays an important role, ceramic materials can be effective.The function of these ceramic plates is to maximally deform and bluntthe harder metal bullet tips of NIJ Level III or IV, or the sharp,hardened steel tip of the NIJ Stab Body Armor P & S-Class test knifeblades, in order to minimize the penetration depth into the supportingmaterial layer (i.e. polymers and/or metals) underneath the outerceramic layer. For high speed shrapnel or rifles at NIJ Level IV, platescomposed of very hard ceramics such as boron carbide or silicon carbide,or ceramic plates combined with UHMWPE or aramid laminations can beeffective. For the coupling element material, which will be describedfurther below, UHMWPE and aramid fibers provide very high tensilestrengths, e.g., between about 3000 and about 3500 MPa (10⁶ Pascals).The aramids offer superior high temperature performance but may besusceptible to degradation from UV exposure and water damage. The UHMWPEhave good UV and water resistance but may lose tensile strength attemperatures above 70° C.

In an embodiment that may be capable of stopping handgun rounds up toNIJ Level IIIA, Dyneema® HB50 plates may be used. In an embodiment forstopping knife stab threats, relatively thin ceramic plates may be used.In an embodiment for stopping NIJ Level III and Level IV rifle roundsrelatively thick ceramic plates may be used. Combinations of thesematerials can also be used. Other materials for armor plates 12 arecontemplated.

In one embodiment, the size of each individual plate 12 is between about1 inch and about 4 inches measured across the top surface at the maximumdimension of the plate. The actual size of the solid pate can beselected based on the curvature of the area the armor is intended toprotect, e.g., greater curvature may require small armor plates toprovide for increased flexible of the assembly. In some embodiments,individual plate size can be less than about 1 inch and in otherembodiments it can be greater than about 4 inches. In an embodimentwhere the armor may be used for the protection of a vehicle, the size ofthe individual solid armor plates may be between about 3 inches andabout 12 inches. In other embodiments, the plate size may be greaterthan about 12 inches.

Within an assembly of armor plates, each plate may have substantiallythe same size as each other. Alternatively, the size of individualplates as well as plate thickness may vary at different portions ofarmor assembly 10. Similarly, the pattern arrangement and shape ofplates 12 may also vary within an armor assembly. In general, the shapeof an armor plate refers to the 2-dimensional shape of the armor platefrom a plan view substantially orthogonal to the top or bottom surfaceof the armor plate. For example, in the portion of assembly 10 shown inFIGS. 1A and 1B, armor plates 12 have a square shape and are arranged ina 3×3 grid. In other examples, armor plates 12 may exhibit two or moreshapes and may be arranged in one or more patterns within assembly 10.

In some examples, depending on the material of armor plates, arelatively small gap may be present between adjacent plates. Forexample, when using Dyneema HB50 for armor plates, very little gap spacemay be needed for the overall armor assembly to have sufficientflexibility to conform to the curvature of a person's chest/torsoregion. Therefore, in such an example, the pattern of the armor plateswithin such an armor assembly may not as significant compared toassemblies including armor plates made of different materials. Becausethe Dyneema HB50 material is soft and easily deformable, there is a gooddegree of freedom in the overall assembly's flexural, torsional andshear movements even when adjacent plates are touching in their restingpositions.

In some examples, for stiff, rigid armor materials such as metal, anypattern may be selected so long as long the radius of curvature of theoverall armor assembly is small enough to conform to a desired surface,e.g., to a person's chest/torso region. The radius of curvature mayrefer to the curvature of the armor assembly in a “lock up” position ofthe overall assembly, i.e. when the armor plates no longer are free tomove because the plates have been bent and extended as far as thecoupling elements and interference between neighboring plates allow.

Design factors such as plate size, shape, thickness, and pattern may beselected for various portions to provide varying properties fordifferent portions of armor assembly 10. For examples, such factors maybe selected to provide for first portion of assembly 10 that is moreflexible than a second portion of assembly 10. Similarly, such factorsmay be selected to provide for varying degrees of breathability as wellas protection from ballistic threats throughout armor assembly 10. Inthe case of assembly 10 configured for use as body armor, portions ofassembly 10 may be designed to be more flexible at portionscorresponding to curved body features and less flexible for portionscorresponding to portions of a body having a relatively flat surface.The level of protection provided by assembly 10 may be increased forportions designed to protect more vital portion of a body compared tothat of less vital portions of a body.

Coupling element 14 may be formed of any suitable material having thestrength to couple plates 12 of assembly 10 to one another as well astransfer force from a localized impact throughout armor assembly 14.Coupling element 14 may be relatively flexible to allow plates 12 tomove relative to one another. For ease of description, in some cases,coupling element 14 may be referred to as rope 14. However, othersuitable materials and/or structures are contemplated for couplingelement 14. Suitable material may include fibers strands, yarns andropes. In some example, coupling element 14 may include one or moreropes, such as, e.g., braided-strand ropes. It has been found that someropes are effective in transmitting the initial stress from an impact tothe surrounding structure. The ropes can be constructed from any typesof fibers, such as those used for fisherman's nets or ropes used forparachutes or for mountain climbing. In some embodiments, aramid, orhigh molecular weight polyethylene, such as Dyneema® or Spectra®, may beutilized for the rope material. Other embodiments use nylon or blends ofnylon, polyethylene and/or aramid. Combinations of any conventional ornew rope materials can be used. The ropes can comprise braided yarns orother fiber structures. In one preferred embodiment, ropes having abraided helical structure are used. Ropes with braided helicalstructures may have the ability to deform and absorb energy more so thansimple yarns or wires due at least in part to the braided structure.

Alternatively or additionally, coupling element 14 may be formed of oneor more wire strands. Similar to that described for the material used toform armor plates, example metals may exhibit sufficient elongation atbreak and ductility in order to avoid fracturing/rupturing. The sameexample metals listed above for metal alloy armor plates may also beused as example metal alloy materials for coupling elements. As above,metallic alloy wire may exhibit a braided helical structures. In someexamples, Dyneema/Spectra/Kevlar may be preferred over metal ropes/wiresbecause of strength-to-weight advantage of the non-metallic materials,as examples metal alloys may significantly add to the overall weightrelative to some non-metallic options. In some example, armor plates andcoupling elements may be composed of identical or substantially similarmaterials rather than dissimilar materials to avoid potential problemscaused by mismatches in mechanical impedance and modulus.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating two example armor plates 12a and 12 b of an armor assembly that are coupled to one another viaexample coupling elements 14 from a plan view. For ease of illustration,coupling elements 14 are shown only for the two adjacent edges of plates12 a, 12 b. Armor plates 12 a, 12 b may be substantially the same orsimilar to that of plates 12 a-i shown in FIG. 1A. A plurality ofapertures 14 extending through armor plates are dispersed at discretelocations about the perimeter of plates 12 a, 12 b. However, unlike thatof plates 12 a-i shown in FIGS. 1A and B, apertures 16 are locatedadjacent the edge of plates 12 a and 12 b at varying distances to formtwo separate rows of apertures 16. Such a configuration may be providefor additional connections between armor plates 12 a, 12 b via couplingelement 14 to increase the overall connection strength between plate 12a and plate 12 b. In other examples, apertures may be aligned in asingle row around the perimeter, e.g., as shown in FIG. 1A, or mayinclude more than two rows, e.g., three rows, of apertures dispersedaround the perimeter of individual armor plates in assembly 10.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view theassembly of FIG. 1A along line A-A. As shown, armor plates 12 g-i arecoupled to each other via ropes 14 which extend through apertures formedin each plate. The top and bottom surface of each of plates 12 g-i arearranged along substantially the same plane and plates 12 g-i form adiscontinuous layer of armor material when assembly 10 is laid flat.However, the plane of the discontinuous layer may vary, e.g., whenassembly 10 bent around curved surface, as a result of flexibility ofassembly 10 on a global level (e.g. multi-plate perspective). In someexamples, even if individual plates 12 of assembly 10 are relativelyrigid plates, the arrangement of plates 12 and ropes 14 in assembly 10over a portion that includes multiple plates may allow armor assembly 10to bend such that assembly 10 roughly follows the contour of a curvedsurface. For examples, in some embodiments, assembly 10, as well asother example armor assemblies described herein, may be configured suchthat at least a portion of armor assembly 10 may substantially conformto a flat surface as well as bend to substantially conform to a curvedsurface. As described above, the flexibility of an armor assembly may bedescribed in terms of radius of curvature for the armor assembly at“lock-up.” Such radius of curvature generally refer the radius ofcurvature when the armor plates of an armor assembly are no longer arefree to move because the plates have been bent and extended as far asthe coupling elements and interference between neighboring plates allow.At such a point, the armor assembly cannot be bent further due to theconfiguration of the armor plates, gaps, and coupling elements, forexample, without plastically deforming or otherwise permanentlydeforming the armor assembly. For example, for ceramic-based armorplates, after such a point, one or more ceramic plates may fracture. Asanother example, for metal-based armor plates, after such a point, oneor more metal plates may be permanently deformed. Additionally oralternatively, the coupling elements of an armor assembly maypermanently yield, e.g., ropes may become permanently stretched. In someexamples, assembly 10, as well as other example armor assemblies of thisdisclosure, may exhibit a radius of curvature less than approximately300 mm, such as, for example, a radius of curvature betweenapproximately 100 mm and approximately 200 mm. In some examples, theradius of curvature may be less than approximately 30 mm. Moreover, insome examples, assembly 10, as well as other example armor assemblies ofthis disclosure, may have some maximum curvature, e.g., due to minimumeffective plate size, maximum gap distance between plates, and/or otherfactors, which can be expressed in terms of a minimum radius ofcurvature. For example, in some cases, for assembly 10, as well as otherexample armor assemblies of this disclosure, the radius of curvature maybe greater than approximately 30 mm, such as, e.g., greater thanapproximately 100 mm. In some examples, an armor assembly may also beable to conform to a substantially flat surface as well conform to acurved surface consistent with the example radius of curvature valuesdescribed above. Alternatively, an example armor assembly may beconfigured to have a maximum radius of curvature in which case the armorassembly may not be laid flat but may still be bent to a smaller radiusof curvature values.

In FIG. 4, armor plates 12 g-i are shown as having substantially thesame thickness as one another. In some examples, plates 12 g-i may havea thickness between about 2 mm to about 30 mm, such as, e.g., about 2 mmto about 15 mm or about 4 mm to about 10 mm. In some examples, plates 12g-i have a thickness of at least 6 mm. Such example thicknesses may beapplicable for a variety of armor plate compositions, including, e.g.,HB50 Dyneema. Different thickness may be selected based on thecomposition of the armor plates and may be varied based on the level ofprotection desired to be provided by armor assembly 10. Platethicknesses other than those described are contemplated. Such examplethicknesses may be applicable for one or more of the plates described inthis disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 4, each of armor plates 12 g-i is formed of a singlelayer, which may be formed of one or more of the materials describedabove. In other example, each of armor plates 12 g-i may be multiplelayer structures. The thickness and composition of the layers of eacharmor plate may be selected to provide desired properties. Each of armorplates 12 g-i may be formed of multiple layers having substantially thesame composition. In other examples, plates 12 g-i may be formed ofmultiple layers, where at least two layers have different compositions.In one embodiment, armor plates with a multiple layer structures mayinclude an armor material base layer coated with a different materialoptimized for sound dampening characteristics to minimize sound when theplates hit and rub against each other. In another example, a multiplelayer armor plate may include a Dyneema plate with a ceramic layer ontop since the hard ceramic may effectively blunt a bullet or otherprojective before it engages the Dyneema layer. Another example multiplelayer armor plate may include a metal plate with a ceramic layer on top.In some example, an intermediate layer can also be used in cases wherethere is a mechanical impedance mismatch between two dissimilar layers.Bridging the difference in mechanical impedance values will improve theenergy transmission from the layer that is first impacted by the bulletto layers underneath

The edges of adjacent plates 12 g-i define gaps 18. Gaps 18 betweenneighboring armor plates 12 (e.g., plates 12 h and 12 i in FIG. 4) mayextend from the top surface to the bottom surface of the discontinuouslayer formed via armor plates 12 in armor assembly 10. In some examples,gaps 18 may extend through the discontinuous layer formed via plates 12along a substantially linear path. Increasing the distance betweenneighboring armor plates 12 may increase the size of gap 18. In someexamples, gaps 18 may have a width (i.e., the distance between the edgesof adjacent plates defining the gap) between approximately 2 mm toapproximately 10 mm, such as, e.g., approximately 5 mm to approximately7 mm. Gaps width may be substantially uniform throughout armor assembly10 or may vary from plate to plates or region to region, e.g., due todifferent pattern and/or plate shape in armor assembly 10). In someexamples, the average width of gaps 18 over one or more regions of armorassembly 10 may be expressed as gap density calculated as the overallgap surface area for a particular portion of assembly 10 divided by theoverall area of the assembly 10 in that portion (i.e., plate surfacearea plus gap surface area). In some examples, the gap density ofassembly 10 may range from approximately 5% to approximately 30% suchas, e.g., approximately 10% to approximately 20%.

The gap density of assembly 10 may be selected based on the overalllevel of protection, breathability, and/or flexibility desired for anarmor assembly. For example, as the gap density of assembly 10 isincreased, the overall flexibility and/or breathability of armorassembly 10 may also be increased. However, while increasing the overalldensity of gaps 18 (i.e., gap space within the overall area of assembly10) may increase the flexibility and/or breathability of armor assembly,the increase in the gap area in assembly 10 may also decrease therelative level of protection provided by assembly 10. In general, gaps18 between neighboring plates 12 in assembly 10 represent weak portionswithin the assembly that may be susceptible to ballistic threats orknife threats. Accordingly, in some examples, it may be desirable tominimize the gap space of a plate while maintaining at a minimumthreshold level of breathability and/or flexibility. However, for asingle discontinuous armor layer, such as that shown in FIG. 1A, gapsmay be present to at least some extent between individual armor plates12 in the discontinuous armor layer of armor assembly 10 to provideflexibility and/or breathability.

In accordance with some example of the disclosure, an armor assembly mayinclude multiple discontinuous layers of armor layers, such as, e.g.,the discontinuous armor layer formed of plates 12 and coupling elements14 in FIG. 1A, overlaying one another. Adjacent discontinuous armorlayers may be arranged relative to each other such that at least aportion of the gaps in one discontinuous armor layer are covered byarmor plates of the second discontinuous layer. In this manner, themultilayer armor assembly may provide for increased protection bycovering gaps in an individual layer with armor plates from anotherarmor layer while also allowing for the flexibility and breathabilityimparted by each of the armor layers including gaps between adjacentarmor plates.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram illustrating, from a plan view, a portionof example armor assembly 24 including example first and seconddiscontinuous armor layers. The first and second discontinuous armorlayers are formed of first armor plates 12 a-1 (referred to collectivelyas plates 12) and second armor plates 22 a-i (referred to collectivelysecond armor plates 22), respectively. For ease of illustration, thecoupling elements (e.g., ropes) used to connect armor plates within thesame armor layer and/or armor plates from different armor layers are notshown in FIG. 5. However, the coupling elements used to connect firstarmor plates 12 and second armor plate 22 of the first and seconddiscontinuous armor layers, respectively, may be substantially the sameor similar to that described above for coupling element 14 shown, forexample, in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Coupling elements may connect plates ofassembly 24 in the horizontal and/or vertical directions.

The first discontinuous armor layer (bottom layer as illustrated in FIG.5) formed via first armor plates 12 may be the same or substantiallysimilar to that of similarly number plates 12 of assembly 10. Adjacentplates 12 are separated by gaps 18 which extend through the firstdiscontinuous armor layer formed by plates 12. In a similar fashion, thesecond discontinuous armor layer (top layer as illustrated in FIG. 5) isformed via second armor plates 22, and adjacent plates 22 are separatedby gaps 18 which extend through the second discontinuous layer formed byplates 22. Second plates 22 may be substantially the same or similar tothat of plates 12 described above, e.g., in terms of plate compositiondimensions and the like. Similarly, the second discontinuous layer maybe formed via second plates 22 in a manner substantially the same orsimilar to that described above with regard to the discontinuous armorlayer of armor assembly 10. In some examples, second plates 22 may onaverage be smaller (e.g., in terms of surface area) than that of firstplates 12. In other examples, first and second plates 12, 22 may besubstantially the same size.

As shown in FIG. 5, the pattern, shape, and gap density for each of thefirst and second armor layers is substantially the same as each other.However, second plates 22 are offset from that of plates 12 such that atleast a portion of gap 18 in the first discontinuous armor layer iscovered by second plates 22 and at least a portion of gap 19 in thesecond discontinuous layer is covered by first plates 12. By overlyingthe second plates 22 of the second discontinuous layer over the firstplates 12 of the first discontinuous layer in such a fashion, the totalarea of gaps extending all the way through both the first and seconddiscontinuous layer, e.g., gap 28 shown in FIG. 5, is less than that ofthe total gap area of either the first discontinuous layer or seconddiscontinuous layer. In this manner, armor assembly 24 may provideincreased protection compared to that of the first and second armorlayers individually, while also allowing for an armor assembly 24including two discontinuous armor layers that may be flexible and/orbreathable. Put another way, by offsetting the first and seconddiscontinuous armor layers, one armor layer offers protection where theother layer is weakest (e.g., at the gaps of each armor layer).

FIG. 6 is another conceptual diagram illustrating, from a plan view, aportion of example armor assembly 26 including example first and seconddiscontinuous layers. The first and second discontinuous armor layersare formed of first armor plates 12 a-d (referred to collectively asplates 12) and second armor plates 22 a-g (referred to collectively assecond armor plates 22), respectively. Again, for ease of illustration,the coupling elements (e.g., ropes) used to connect armor plates withinthe same armor layer and/or armor plates from different armor layers arenot shown in FIG. 6. However, the coupling elements used to connectfirst armor plates 12 and second armor plate 22 of the first and seconddiscontinuous armor layers, respectively, may be substantially the sameor similar to that described above for coupling element 14 shown, forexample, in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Coupling elements may connect plates ofassembly 26 in the horizontal and/or vertical directions.

Armor assembly 26 may be substantially the same or similar to that ofarmor assembly 24 of FIG. 5. For example, a second discontinuous armorlayer formed of second armor plates 22 overlays a first discontinuousarmor layer formed by first armor plates 12. The second discontinuousarmor layer is arranged relative to the first discontinuous armor layersuch that at least a portion of second plates 22 cover gaps betweenadjacent plates 12 of the first layer, and vice versa. Gap 28 extendingthrough both the first and second discontinuous armor layers is presentalbeit on a smaller scale compared to that shown in FIG. 5.

Unlike that of armor assembly 24 (FIG. 5), the shape and pattern ofsecond plates 22 in the second discontinuous armor layer is differentfrom that of the shape and pattern of first plates 12 in the firstdiscontinuous armor layer. As illustrated by armor assembly 26, insteadof using two identical discontinuous armor layers, a first discontinuousarmor layer can be used with a second discontinuous armor layer ofplates that are designed to cover a relatively narrow area around thegaps in the first discontinuous armor layer. This may allow for improvedweight efficiency since the second discontinuous layer does not overlapas extensively with the first discontinuous armor layer. For example,the second discontinuous armor layer may be described as having a gaparea density that is greater than that of the first discontinuous armorlayer. In some examples, first armor plates 12 that form the firstdiscontinuous armor layer may be referred to herein as Solid ArmorPlates (SAP) and the second plates 22 of the second discontinuous armorlayer may be referred to herein as Gap Plugging Plates (GPP).

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a portion of exampleassembly 30 including example first and second discontinuous layers froma side view. The first discontinuous armor layer is formed of SAPs 12a-12 d (collectively SAPs 12) and the second discontinuous armor layeris formed of GPPs 22 a-c (collectively GPPs 22). Again, for ease ofillustration, the coupling elements used to attach SAPs 12 and GPPs 22to each other are not shown. However, the coupling elements used toconnect SAPs 12 and GPPs 22 of the first and second discontinuous armorlayers, respectively, may be substantially the same or similar to thatdescribed above for coupling element 14 shown, for example, in FIGS. 1Aand 1B. Coupling elements may connect plates of assembly 30 in thehorizontal and/or vertical directions.

As shown in FIG. 7, GPPs 22 overlay at least a portion of SAPs 12 tocover at least a portion of gaps 18 present between SAPs 12 in the firstdiscontinuous layer. Similarly, gaps 19 between GPPs 22 are covered toat least some extent by SAPs 22. Each GPPs 22 has a “T” shape thatallows a portion of each GPPs 22 to extend into gap 18 between SAPs 12while also including a portion that directly overlays a surface of SAPs12. As will be described below, such a configuration may increase theease with which GPPs 22 are attached to SAPs 12. The thickness of firstand second discontinuous armor layers formed by SAPs 12 and GPPs 22,respectively, may be substantially the same or may be different from oneanother.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are conceptual diagrams illustrating GPP 22 a of FIG. 7from a perspective view and side view, respectively. As shown, GPP 22 ahas a “T” shape as shown in FIG. 7. In some examples, a “T” shape canprovide improved low angle performance in an armor assemblies designedto stop knife attacks. FIGS. 8A and 8B are conceptual diagramsillustrating another example GPP 22 d from a perspective view and sideview, respectively. Unlike that of GPP 22 a, GPP 22 d has an elongatedflat shape rather than a “T” shape. GPP 22 a may be used in addition toor alternatively to that of GPP 22 d in assembly 30 to at leastpartially cover gaps 18 between SAPs 12. However, the flat, elongatedshape of GPP 22 d does not allow for a portion of GPP 22 d to beextending into gap 18 in the first discontinuous armor layer. Othergeometries for GPPs are contemplated.

Some examples GPPs such as GPPs having a “T” shape include a verticalportion. The vertical portion may give the GPP substantially greaterstrength against bending under an applied force or impact because of therelatively large moment of inertia and higher bending modulus exhibitedby the GPP about a horizontal bending axis, e.g., in the plane of FIG.11 below. Additionally, GPP embodiments incorporating a vertical portionmay tend to lock the vertical portion in place in the gap betweenadjacent SAPs. In one embodiment, the length of a GPP may be larger thanits width and the height of the vertical portion may be approximatelyequal to the width of the GPP. In other embodiments, the height of thevertical portion may be less than the width of the GPP, and in stillother embodiments the height of the vertical portion may be greater thanthe width of the GPP. In one embodiment, the length of the GPP is atleast 50% larger than its width.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams illustrating an exampleassembly including SAPs 12 a, 12 b and GPPs 22 a coupled to each othervia an example rope 14. FIG. 10A illustrates a side view of SAPs 12 a,12 b and GPPs 22 a, and FIG. 10B illustrates a cross-sectional viewalong a plane that intersects apertures 16 in SAPs 12 a, 12 b, andapertures 32 in GPP 22 a. As shown, a portion of “T” shaped GPP 22 aextends into gap 18 between SAPs 12 a, 12 b. Rope 14 forms a secure loopthat extends through apertures 16 in SAPs 12 a, 12 b and apertures 32 inGPP 22 a to attach GPP 22 a and SAPs 12 a, 12 b to each other. In thismanner, rope 14 may attach individual armor plates in the samediscontinuous layer (SAPs 12 a, 12 b) to one another in the horizontaldirection as well as individual armor plates that are in otherdiscontinuous layers in the vertical direction. As described above,coupling elements 14 may couple armor plates that are in the samediscontinuous armor layer, in different discontinuous armor layers, orboth.

FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an alternate exampleassembly including SAPs 12 a, 12 b and GPPs 22 a coupled to each othervia an example rope 14. SAPs 12 a, 12 b and GPP 22 a are shown along across-section similar to that shown in FIG. 10B. As shown in FIG. 11,the shape and relative configuration of GPP 22 a and SAPs 12 a, 12 b issubstantially the same or similar to that shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B.However, apertures 32 in GPP 22 a extend through GPP 22 a insubstantially the same direction as apertures 16 extend through SAPs 12a, 12 b, rather than in substantially orthogonal directions. In otherexamples, apertures 16, 32 may extend through GPP 22 a and/or SAP alongan angular path that is neither substantially orthogonal norsubstantially parallel to the surface plane of the first and/or seconddiscontinuous layer. When assembled as shown in FIG. 11, apertures 32are approximately aligned in the horizontal direction with apertures 16of SAPs 12 a, 12 b, and rope 14 forms a secure loop through eachaperture to attached GPP 22 a to SAP 12 a, 12 b.

FIGS. 40A and 40B are conceptual diagrams illustrating a bullet 80impacting an example armor assembly at a portion similar to that shownin FIG. 10B. As shown, when bullet 80 impacts GPP 22 a, the examplearmor assembly is self-tightening or self-enhancing in the sense thatwhen GPP 22 a is pushed down by bullet 70, first and second SAPs 12 a,12 b, which support GPP 22 a, approach each other and tighten the gripon GPP 22 a. As will be described below, in a three-layer armorassembly, when a bullet impacts on an isolated hole cover, e.g., IHC 46shown in FIG. 26, there is a self-enhancing effect where the bulletpushes on IHC 46 which tends to pull adjacent SAPs closer to each other.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are conceptual diagrams illustrating example GPP 22 afrom perspective and side-views, respectively. As shown, GPP 22 a has a“T” shape, and includes a plurality of apertures 32 extending through aportion of GPP 22 a in a manner consistent with the example shown inFIGS. 10A and 10B. In FIGS. 12A and 12B, GPP 22 a also includes twoprotrusions 34 on the surface of GPP 22 a directly adjacent to the uppersurface of SAPs 12 a, 12 b when inserted into gap 18 as shown, e.g., inFIG. 13 for armor assembly 38. Protrusions 34 allows the contact betweenGPP 22 a and SAPs 12 a, 12 b to be localized to protrusions 34 ratherthan along substantially the entire length of gap 18 filled by GPP 22 aso as to not restrict air flow through the first and seconddiscontinuous layers through gap 18. FIG. 14 shows example air flow 36through the armor assembly of FIG. 13. Such airflow allows forbreathability in the example in which armor assembly forms a portion ofbody armor. Adequate airflow and moisture passage across body armor maybe important for human comfort. Ample air passage through the armor ofthe present invention can be achieved due to the nature of the design.Protrusions 34 of GPP 22 a provides additional space between GPP 22 aand SAPs 12 a, 12 b for air or moisture to pass through. Alternativelyor additionally, SAPs 12 a, 12 b may include protrusions to provide forseparation between GPP 22 a and SAPs 12 a, 12 b.

In some examples, the configuration of multiple discontinuous layerarmor assemblies, such as one or more of those examples armor assembliesdescribed in this disclosure, may be such that one or gaps are formed inthe armor assembly which extend along a substantially continuous,nonlinear path through all of the individual discontinuous armor layersof an armor assembly. In this manner, the air flow through one or morecontinuous gaps through the armor assembly may provide for a relativelybreathable armor assembly, e.g., in case in which the armor assembly isworn as a body armor. In some examples, the average air flow exhibitedthroughout the entire armor assembly may be greater than the air flow,if any, through an individual armor plate of the assembly. In thismanner, solid armor plates may be used in an example armor assemblywhile also providing for suitable air flow through the armor assembly asa whole, e.g., via gaps between the solid armor plates.

FIGS. 15A and 15B are conceptual diagrams illustrating an exampleprocess for forming example GPP having a “T” shape. As show, multiplelayers of high tensile strength yarns or fabrics 43 may be soaked with aproperly selected resin and then arranged as shown in FIG. 15A onadjacent molding members 39, 41. Bottom layers of the yarns or fabricare pushed into a cavity between members 39, 41 to form the protrudingportion of the “T” shape while top layers of the yarns or fabric extendstraight across the “T” shape. The assembly is heated under pressurebetween members 49, 41, 45, as illustrated in FIG. 15B. The part isremoved once the resin is cured resulting in GPP 22 a shown in FIG. 16.In some examples, apertures 32 may be drilled or otherwise formed into aportion of GPP 22 a to result in a configuration such as that shown inFIG. 10B or 11. In some examples, apertures 32 may be formed through GPP22 a so that ropes can be used to sew together the top layers of yarnsor fabric with the bottom layers of yarns or fabric as shown in FIG. 17.The resin used in constructing GPP 22 a is selected so that GPP 22 a issufficiently rigid and the resin is also selected to be ductile enoughthat GPP 22 does not easily fracture under ballistic impact.

FIGS. 18A-E are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armor plate22 j from various viewpoints. In particular, FIGS. 18A and 18B showsplate 22 j from top and bottom views, respectively. FIG. 18C show plate22 j rotated 90 degrees from the top view shown in FIG. 18A along themajor axis. FIGS. 18D and 18E show plate 22 from a side view of FIGS.18A and 18B, respectively. Similar to those other example “T” shaped GPPdescribed above, armor plate 22 j may be utilized as a GPP in an armorassembly that covers one or more gap portions between an adjacentdiscontinuous armor layer formed of SAPs coupled to one another via oneor more coupling elements.

As shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B, the top portion or horizontal portion ofthe “T” shaped plate include a plurality of apertures including exampleaperture 43 b extending all the way through the top portion. As shown inFIG. 18C, the side portion or vertical portion of plate 22 j includes aplurality of apertures including example aperture 43 a that extends allthe way through the side portion. In each case, apertures 43 a, 43 b maybe used to receive a coupling element at the discrete locations alongplate 22 j to attach plate 22 j to other GPPs within the samediscontinuous armor layer and/or attach plate 22 j to one or more armorplates in a directly or indirectly adjacent discontinuous layer formedof a plurality of plates, such as, e.g., a discontinuous layer includinga plurality of SAPs.

FIG. 19 is a conceptual diagram illustrating three example armor plates12 a, 12 b, 22 j attached to each other via coupling elements 14 a-cfrom a side view. Armor plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 j may be configuredrelative to each other similar to that shown in FIG. 10A, for example.Armor plates 12 a, 12 b may form a first discontinuous armor layer ofSAPs. Armor plate 22 j may be substantially the same as that shown inFIGS. 18A-E, and may form a portion of a second discontinuous armorlayer of GPPs that overlies the first armor layer of SAPs such that allor a portion of the gaps between SAPs are covered by the seconddiscontinuous layer of GPPs.

The path of coupling elements 14 a-c within plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 jwithin one or more apertures in plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 j are shown asdashed lines. As shown, coupling elements 14 a and 14 b are used toattach armor plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 j in a generally vertical directionwhile coupling element 14 attach armor plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 j in agenerally horizontal direction. Coupling element 14 c may extend throughthe same apertures in plates 12 a, 12 b as that of coupling elements 14a, 14 b or may extend through different apertures on plates 12 a, 12 bthat spaced apart from one another on the perimeter of the respectiveplates.

FIGS. 20A-D are conceptual diagrams illustrating example armor plates 12a, 12 b, 22 k from various viewpoints. Armor plates 12 a, 12 b may forma portion of a discontinuous armor layer including a plurality of SAPs.Armor plate 22 k may form a portion of another discontinuous armor layerformed of a plurality of GPPs directly adjacent to that thediscontinuous armor layer including armor plates 12 a, 12 b. Armor plate22 k may be substantially the same or similar to that of armor plate 22j of FIGS. 18A-E except that armor plate 22 k includes a total ofsixteen apertures, e.g., 43 c, in the top surface rather than fourteenas shown for armor plate 22 j of FIGS. 18A and 18B. FIGS. 20A and 20Cillustrates plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k along cross-section B-B in FIG. 20D,with FIG. 20C being rotated 90 degrees from that shown in FIG. 20A. FIG.20D is a top-view of plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k. FIG. 20B is a view ofplates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k along cross-section C-C in FIG. 20D.

As shown in FIGS. 20A-D, armor plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k are attached toeach other via coupling element 14 d by extending through the apertures(e.g., aperture 43 c of plate 22 k) of plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k in boththe vertical and horizontal directions for interlayer attachment andintralayer attachment. While the illustrated example includes only asingle coupling element 14 d to attach plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k, otherexamples may include a plurality of coupling elements over a portion anarmor assembly formed in part by plates 12 a, 12 b, 22 k.

FIGS. 21A-D are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armorassembly 42 including multiple example discontinuous armor layers formedof SAPs 12 a-d and GPPs 22 a-d. In particular, FIGS. 21A and 21Cillustrate top and bottom view, respectively, of assembly 42, and FIGS.21B and 21D illustrates side views. Although not shown for ease ofillustration, SAPs 12 a-d and GPPs 22 a-d may be connected to each othervia one or more coupling elements as described above. As before, SAPs 12a-d form a first discontinuous armor layer that is adjacent to a seconddiscontinuous armor layer formed by GPPs 22 a-d. GPPs 22 a-d have a “T”shape and covers a least a portion of the gaps in the firstdiscontinuous armor layer formed between SAPs 12 a-d. Similarly, atleast a portion of the gaps in the second discontinuous armor layerformed between GPPs 22 a-d are covered by SAPs 12 a-d.

Despite the overlaying configuration of GPPs 22 a-d and SAPs 12 a-d, gap28 may exist in armor assembly 42. As shown, gap 28 extends through boththe first and second discontinuous armor layer along a substantiallylinear path perpendicular to the surface plane of assembly 42. In someexamples, gap 28 may present a weakness in armor assembly 42, and may becovered in some embodiments by one or more armor plates that form athird discontinuous armor layer overlaying the first and second layersof SAPs and GPPs, respectively. As will be described further below, thethird discontinuous armor layer is formed of a plurality of individualplates, where individual armor plates are each used to cover a singlegap 28.

FIGS. 22A-C are conceptual diagrams illustrating another portion of anexample armor assembly 44 including multiple example discontinuous armorlayers. FIG. 22A is a plan view of the top surface of armor assembly 44,FIG. 22B is a side view of armor assembly 44, and FIG. 22C is a planview of the bottom surface of armor assembly 44. Only a portion of SAPs12 a-d are shown in FIG. 22C for ease of illustration. Similar to thatdescribed above, SAPs 12-d form a first discontinuous armor layer, andGPPs 22 a-d form a second discontinuous armor layer overlaying the firstarmor layer to at least partially covers gaps between SAPs 12 a-d.

Armor assembly 44 also includes armor plate 46 which forms at least apart of a third discontinuous armor layer that overlays a portion of thefirst and second armor layer, and covers the gap, such as gap 28 shownin FIG. 18A, extending through both the first and second armors layersalong a substantially linear path. In this manner, armor plate 46effectively “plugs” the remaining gap in armor assembly 44 from thefirst and second discontinuous armor layers. Of course, only a portionof armor assembly 44 is illustrated in FIGS. 22A-C and a number ofrelatively isolated gaps in the first and second armor layers may bepresent over the entire assembly requiring a plurality of armor plates46 to cover substantially all, or at least some, of the gaps. In someexamples, armor plate 46 may also be referred to herein as Isolated HoleCover (IHC) 46.

As the gaps extending through the first and second discontinuous armorlayers along a linear path may be relatively isolated in the surface ofarmor assembly 42, the gap area density of the third discontinuouslayer, which includes armor plate 46, required to cover gaps 28 may berelatively high. However, the third discontinuous armor layer may covermore surface area of the first and second layers to provide multiplelayers of armor plate at points in an armor assembly to increase theoverall degree of protection provided by armor assembly. In someexamples, IHC 46 may be formed of the same or similar materials as thatof GPPs 22 a-d and/or SAPs 12 a-d, or may be formed of differentmaterials than that of GPPs 22 a-d and/or SAPs 12 a-d. Suitable armormaterials may include those described in this disclosure for exampleGPPs and SAPs. IHC 46 may have any suitable thickness and may be thesame or different than that of GPPS 22 a-d and/or SAPs 12 a-d.

Similar to that of SAPs 12 a-d, GPPs 22 a-d, IHC 46 may include one or aplurality of apertures, e.g., aperture 48 a, that allows IHC 46 to becoupled to one or more armor plates of armor assembly 44. As shown inFIGS. 22A and 22C, ropes 14 or other coupling element extends verticallythrough aligned apertures, including aperture 48 a, for example, toconnect SAPs 12 a-d, GPPs 22 a-d and IHC 46 to each other to form thepattern shown in FIGS. 22A-22C. As with the other examples described inthis disclosure, such a pattern may be repeated over all or a portion ofarmor assembly 44. In some examples, IHC 46 may be attached or otherwisefixed in place to cover one or more gaps extending through the first andsecond discontinuous armor layers of assembly 44 without the use of acoupling element to connect IHC to the adjacent layers.

As illustrated by FIG. 22A-22C, for example, in some embodiments of thisdisclosure, multiple layer constructions may be used for armorassemblies which provide for substantially 100 percent areal coveragewhile maintaining flexibility and/or breathability of the armorassembly. Moreover, in some examples, such as the example threediscontinuous layer assembly construction shown in FIGS. 22A-22C, anarmor assembly may provide for reduced weight, e.g., compared to armorassemblies having one or more continuous layers. For example, for anarmor assembly configuration similar to that shown in FIG. 27 below, thearmor assembly can have a weight equivalent of approximately 1.23 timesthe weight of a single, continuous layer of using the same material andthickness of SAPs 12 a-12 f (ignoring the weight of coupling elements14). If three substantially identical discontinuous layers of SAPs areused, a weight of approximately 2.56 times the weight of a single fullcoverage layer of SAP material would be obtained in such an example.

FIGS. 23A-C are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example armor plate22 a from bottom, side and end views, respectively. Armor plate 22 a maybe the same or substantially similar to that shown in FIGS. 22A-C, andmay form a portion of a discontinuous armor layer including a pluralityof GPPs. FIGS. 24A and 24B are conceptual diagrams illustrating fromside and plan views, respectively, example armor plate 46 from FIGS.22A-C. As shown, armor plate 22 a includes a plurality of apertures,including 43 d that may be used to connect armor plate 22 a to armorplate 46 using a rope or other coupling element that extends throughboth apertures 43 d, 48 a when arranged as shown in FIGS. 22A-C.Although armor plate 46 is shown as having a octagonal shape, othersuitable shapes are contemplated.

FIG. 25 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofexample armor assembly 50. Armor assembly 50 includes a firstdiscontinuous layer including SAPs 12 a-d and a second discontinuouslayer including GPPs 22 a-22 d which covers at least a portion of thegaps in the first discontinuous layer. As shown, armor assembly 50 maybe the same or substantially similar to armor assembly 42 of FIGS.21A-21D. An example pattern for the plurality of apertures, e.g.,apertures 16 a, 43 a, used to couple the plates in the respective layersto each other, e.g., via a rope or other coupling element, are shown inFIGS. 21A-21D. Other apertures patterns are contemplated. Similar tothat of armor assembly 42, armor assembly 50 includes gap 28 whichextend through the first and second discontinuous layers along asubstantially linear path.

FIG. 26 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofanother example armor assembly 52. Armor assembly 52 is substantiallythe same or similar to that of armor assembly 50. However, in additionto SAPs 12 a-d and GPPs 22 a-d, armor assembly 52 includes armor plateor IHC 46 which covers gap 28 that was present in armor assembly 50 inFIG. 25. IHC 46 has a square shape and is directly connected to each ofSAPs 12 a-d and GPPs 22 a-d via coupling element 14 that extend throughat least one aperture (not labeled) in each respective plate. For easeof illustration, not all coupling elements are shown in FIG. 26. Asshown, SAPs 12 a-d, GPPs, 22 a, and IHC 46 forms a portion of armorassembly 52 in which substantially no gaps defining a substantiallylinear path through the respective armor layers exist over the surfaceof assembly 52.

FIG. 27 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofexample armor assembly 54. The portion of armor assembly shown may besubstantially the same or similar to that of the portion of armorassembly 52 shown in FIG. 26. However, the portion of armor assembly 54illustrated includes SAPs 12 a-f, GPPs, 22 a-g, and IHCs 46 a, 46 b.Additionally, IHCs 46 a, 46 b have an octagonal shape rather than asquare shape. Other shapes for IHC plates are contemplated. In someexamples, a circular or rectangular armor plate can be used for the IHC.

FIG. 28 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofanother example armor assembly 56. The portion of armor assembly shownmay be substantially the same or similar to that of the portion of armorassembly 54 shown in FIG. 27. However, the portion of armor assembly 54illustrated does not include IHCs covering the gaps in the assemblywhich define a substantially linear path through both the first andsecond discontinuous armor layers formed via SAPS 22 a-f and GPPs 22a-h. The perimeters of SAPs 22 a-f covered by GPPs 22 a-h are shown asdashed lines. As shown, for armor assembly 56, coupling elements 14 forma grid pattern which extend over SAPs 12 b and 12 d.

FIGS. 29A-C are conceptual diagrams illustrating various examplediscontinuous armor layers on an example portion of example armorassembly 58. In each case, the coupling element(s) used to connectrespective armor plates of armor assembly 58 are not shown for ease ofillustration. FIG. 29A illustrates a first discontinuous armor layerthat include sixteen, square-shaped SAPs, including SAP 12 a, arrangedin a 4×4 pattern which a plurality of apertures around the perimeter ofeach SAP. FIG. 29B illustrates the first discontinuous layer of FIG. 29Aoverlaid with a second discontinuous layer including twenty four,square-shaped GPPs, including GPP 22 a, arranged in a pattern that isoffset approximately 45 degrees from that of the first discontinuouslayer. FIG. 29C illustrates the first and second discontinuous layers ofassembly 58 overlaid with a third discontinuous layer including nine,square-shaped IHCs, including IHC 46 a arranged in a pattern that isaligned with the first discontinuous layers and offset approximately 45degrees from that of the second discontinuous armor layer. In theexample shown in FIG. 29C, the square-shaped IHCs may be approximatelythe same size as that of the SAPS, and the GPPs may be approximatelyhalf the size of the SAPs.

FIGS. 30A and 30B are conceptual diagrams illustrating various examplediscontinuous armor layers on an example portion of another examplearmor assembly 60. In each case, the coupling element(s) used to connectrespective armor plates of armor assembly 60 are not shown for ease ofillustration. FIG. 30A illustrates the first and second discontinuouslayers of assembly 60. Similar to that of armor assembly 58, the firstdiscontinuous layer includes sixteen, square-shaped SAPs, including SAP12 a, arranged in a 4×4 pattern which a plurality of apertures aroundthe perimeter of each SAP. The second discontinuous layer overlaying aportion of the first discontinuous layers includes nine, square-shapedGPPs, including GPP 22 a, arranged in a 3×3 pattern. FIG. 30Billustrates the first and second discontinuous layers of assembly 60overlaid with a third discontinuous layer including eighteen,square-shaped IHCs, including IHC 46 a arranged in a pattern that isaligned with the first discontinuous layers and offset approximately 45degrees from that of the first and second discontinuous armor layers.Each of the configurations illustrated in FIGS. 30A and 30 b, as well asthe other example configurations, may be repeated as necessary toprovide an armor assembly that covers a desired surface area. In theexample shown in FIG. 30B, the square-shaped IHCs may be approximatelyhalf the size of that of the SAPS and GPPs.

As noted above, the coupling element(s) used to connect the SAPs, GPPs,and IHCs of armor assembly 58 and armor assembly 60 are not shown.However, in these and other examples, such coupling element(s) canextend both horizontally and vertically within the three layerstructure, e.g., a coupling element may extend between SAPs,horizontally between GPPs, and vertically between the GPP layer and theSAP layer. The armor plates in FIGS. 29C and 30B include two rows ofapertures that allow for additional coupling elements to be used to holdthe armor plates together. Tying respective armor plates together bothhorizontally and vertically can offer improved ballistic performancesince a bullet will not be able to penetrate near the boundary of a GPPwithout bursting ropes and damaging plates.

In some examples, the use of GPPs and IHCs plates in conjunction withSAPs act to reduce the weight of an armor assembly, e.g., as compared toan armor assembly including three continuous armor layers. Moreover, thepattern, shape and other design configurations may be provided to reducethe weight of armor assemblies with three discontinuous layers. As anillustration, if 3×3 inch square plates are used for all three layers inan armor assembly with a pattern similar to that shown in FIG. 29A, witha 0.25 inch gap between the armor plates in each discontinuous layer,each layer covers 85.2% of the total area. The total coverage would thenbe 255.6%, or just over 2.5 layers of SAP material. With the geometryshown in FIGS. 22A-C with a GPP width of ⅓ of the SAP plate to platedistance (1.08 inches) and a IHC width of half of the SAP plate to platedistance (0.65 inches), the SAP layer has an areal coverage ofapproximately 85.2%, the GPP layer has an areal cover of approximately23.7% and the IHC layer has an areal coverage of approximately 14.0%.This results in a total coverage of 122.9%, less than half of coverage,and hence the weight, of using 3 layers of identical square plates.Therefore, using selected patterns and geometries, e.g., as shown inFIGS. 22A-C for the GPP and ICH layers results in a reduction of totalguard plate weight by more than 50%. In this manner, some example armorassembly of this disclosure may provide complete coverage using armorplate layers with less than three full coverage layers of plates. Forexample, in some examples, the GPP layer of plates can cover less than60 percent, such as, e.g., less than 50 percent, of the total area ofthe armor assembly and the IHC layer of plates can cover less than 40percent, such as, e.g., less than 25 percent of the total area of thearmor assembly. Thus, the weight of the final body armor assembly isless than an embodiment with three layers of identical plates. Inaddition, such a configuration of progressively reduced sizes for platesin the upper layers will also improve the overall ability to bend andthe flexibility of the three layered plate system of this body armor.

FIG. 31 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example portion ofexample armor assemblies 61 from a cross-sectional view. In particular,the cross-section of FIGS. 31-36 are illustrated along a cross-sectionbisecting an gap portions extending through first discontinuous layerincluding SAPs 12 a, 12 b, and second discontinuous layers includingGPPs 22 a, 22 b. As shown, armor assembly 61 also includes IHC 63, whichis positioned such that IHC 63 covers or “plugs” the gap in the firstand second discontinuous layers. IHC includes first and second holeplugging heads 62 a, 62 b connected via shaft 64, which runs through thegap portion between the first and second discontinuous layers. In thismanner, IHC 63 may take a dumbbell or bobbin type shape. The size offirst and second hole plugging heads 62 a, 62 b connected via shaft 64are sized such that IHC 63 is secured within assembly 61 and cannot fallthrough the gap being plugged between the first and second discontinuouslayers. As show in FIG. 31, in some examples an IHC, such as, IHC 63 mayinclude both a portion (e.g., head 62 a) above the outer surface of thediscontinuous layer formed via the GPPs and also a portion (e.g., head62) below the outer surface of the discontinuous layers formed via theSAPs. In this manner, IHC may be described in some examples as formingtwo discontinuous layers, where one discontinuous layer is adjacent tothe discontinuous layer formed via the GPPs and another discontinuouslayer is adjacent to the discontinuous layer formed via the SAPs.

First and second hole plugging heads 62 a, 62 b may be formed of anysuitable hard and/or tough material and may include armor material suchas, e.g., those materials described herein. In some examples, shaft 64connecting heads 62 a, 62 b may be a rigid member formed of a suitablematerial, armor or otherwise. In other examples, shaft 64 may include arope or other coupling member that may be knotted to function as holeplugging heads 62 a, 62 b. For example, shaft 64 may include one moreexamples of high-strength rope described above with regard to couplingelement 14.

FIGS. 32-34 are conceptual diagrams of example IHCs 63 a, 63 b, 63 cincluding first and second hole plugging heads 62 a, 62 b connected toeach other via rope shaft 64. Each example IHC 63 a, 63 b, 63 c may beincorporated into an example armor assembly, for example, as shown inFIG. 31. In each case, first and second hole plugging heads 62 a, 62 binclude one or more knots in the rope used for shaft 64. The knots forone or both of heads 62 a, 62 b may be tied once shaft 64 is inserted ina gap extending through first and second armor layers are shown in FIG.31. In FIGS. 33 and 34, first and second heads 62 a, 62 b includesemi-sphere shaped and cone-shaped solid head members are engaged by theknots at either end of shaft 64 to assist in securing IHCs 63 b, 63 c inplace within a multiple layer armor assembly as described in thisdisclosure.

In some examples, the first and/or second hole plugging head of an IHCmay include a cap covering the one or more knots at either end of ropeshaft of the IHC. FIGS. 35 and 36 are conceptual diagrams illustratingan example portion of example armor assemblies from cross-sectionalviews. In particular, similar to that of FIG. 31, the cross-section ofFIGS. 35 and 36 are illustrated along a cross-section bisecting gapportions extending through first discontinuous layer including SAPs 12a, 12 b, and second discontinuous layers including GPPs 22 a, 22 b ofthe armor assembly. In each case, IHC 63 d, 63 e cover or “plugs” thegap between the first and second discontinuous layers.

As shown, for IHC 63 d and IHC 63 e, each of the first and second holeplugging heads 62 a, 62 b, respectively, include one or more knots ateither end of shaft 64 which are covered by caps 68 a, 68 b. Caps 68 a,68 b may be constructed of any suitably hard or tough material. Examplematerials may include ceramic, composites, hardened Kevlar® or othertough polymeric materials, including those armor materials describedherein. In an alternative embodiment, the area under one or more of caps68 a, 68 b covering the knot is filled with a rubbery yet strong glue.

In the example of FIG. 36, first hole plugging head 62 a includes ring66 which extends around the perimeter of the gap filled by IHC 63 e toprovide additional support for securing IHC 63 e in place by preventingthe rope knot or other portion of first hole plugging head from pushingthrough the gap in the first and second discontinuous armor layers,e.g., in the case of impact by a ballistic object. FIG. 38 is aconceptual diagram illustrating ring 66 from a perspective view and maytake the form of a washer in some instances. Other examples, ring 66 mayhave a shape other than that of a circle. FIG. 39 is an example IHC 61 fin which both first and second hole plugging heads 62 a, 62 b includering 66.

In some examples, an IHC having a bobbin configuration such as IHC 63 ofFIG. 31 that is formed of rope rather than a rigid material, especiallyfor that of the shaft 64, may prevent the shaft or other portion of theIHC from becoming a solid, rigid projectile upon direct ballisticimpact. FIGS. 39A and 39B are conceptual diagrams illustrating armorassembly 74 with IHC 63 g plugging a gap between armor plates 76 a, 76b, where IHC 63 g includes a rigid shaft. Upon impact by bullet 70, therigid shaft of IHC 63 g may become projectile. Such a scenario may beprevented by the use of a rope-based IHC or other IHC with a flexibleshaft rather than substantially rigid shaft. However, in other examples,rigid shaft IHC may also be suitable for use in armor assemblies.

EXAMPLES Example 1

A variety of example materials were evaluated for use in forming one ormore armor plates of an armor assembly according to this disclosure. Asdescribed above, a variety of material properties may be analyzed whenselecting a material to form armor plates for use in an armor assembly.Tables 1a-d list a variety of example materials and corresponding valuesfor various properties that may be evaluated when selected an armormaterial. For example, Tables 1a-d include a toughness value for eachmaterial. Toughness values (normalized to energy per weight, J/g) werecalculated using Equation 1:

T(estimate)=0.5(σ_(yield)*ε_(ultimate))+0.5σ_(ultimate)(ε_(ultimate)−ε_(yield))  (1)

where T(estimate) is the estimated toughness value, σ_(yield) is thestress at the yield point on the stress-strain curve, σ_(ultimate) isthe stress at the ultimate strength point on the stress-strain curve,ε_(yield) is the strain at the yield point on the stress-strain curve,ε_(ultimate) is the strain at the ultimate strength point on thestress-strain curve.

TABLE 1a Ultimate Yield Tensile Young's Toughness/ Stress StrengthElongation Modulus Density Toughness Density Material (MPa) (MPa) atBreak (MPa) (g/cm) (MPa) (J/g) Ti Grade 5 1100 1170 0.1 114000 4.43107.86 24.35 TI Grade 2 340 430 0.28 102000 4.51 107.08 23.74 440 Steel345 485 0.18 140000 8 74.1 9.26 1340 Steel, oil 814 876 0.21 200000 7.87175.67 22.32 quenched from 830° C. (1525° F.), 595° C. (1100° F.) temperAl 7075-T6 505 570 0.11 72000 2.81 57.13 20.33 or T651 Al 6061-T91 395405 0.12 69000 2.7 46.84 17.35 Al 7076-T61 470 510 0.14 67000 2.82 66.8123.69 Al 7475-T61 500 550 0.12 72000 2.8 61.09 21.82 Al 7001-T6 625 6750.09 71000 2.84 55.53 19.55 or T651 Al 7001-T75 495 580 0.12 71000 2.8462.48 22 Allvac ® M-252 345 1378 0.5 100000 8.24 428.37 51.99 Nickel(estimated) Superalloy, Heat Treatment: 1177° C. (2150° F.) AnnealNickelvac ® 414 1035 0.6 100000 9.22 432.56 46.92 L-605 Nickel(estimated) Superalloy, Heat Treatment: 1204° C. (2200° F.) AnnealGall-Tough ® 414 1110 0.63 100000 8.94 477.76 53.44 Stainless,(estimated) Room Temp.

TABLE 1b Ultimate Yield Tensile Young's Toughness/ Stress StrengthElongation Modulus Density Toughness Density Material (MPa) (MPa) atBreak (MPa) (g/cm) (MPa) (J/g) Haynes ® 188 425 965 0.42 140000 8.94290.44 32.49 alloy, 10% cold reduction, 3.2 mm thick sheet, 1175° C. for5 minutes Haynes ® 25 alloy, 470 1030 0.62 225000 9.13 461.67 50.57 roomtemperature after 25% cold reduction, 1175° C. anneal for 5 minutes AISIType S21900 640 841 0.6 200000 7.83 442.95 56.57 Stainless Steel, 15%final cold reduction, stress relieving heat treatment 705° C. (1300° F.)for 2 hours, air cooled

TABLE 1c Ultimate Yield Tensile Young's Toughness/ Stress StrengthElongation Modulus Density Toughness Density Material (MPa) (MPa) atBreak (MPa) (g/cm) (MPa) (J/g) AISI Type 640 841 0.6 200000 7.83 442.9556.57 S21904 (Alloy 21-6-9) Stainless Steel, 15% final cold reduction,stress relieving heat treatment 705° C. (1300° F.) for 2 hours, aircooled Manganese Brass, 683 689 0.6 100000 8.42 409.25 48.62 UNS C66700(estimated) Beryllium Copper, 1344 1462 0.48 127500 8.25 665.73 80.7 UNSC17200 Copper, 1379 2141 0.4 100000 8.89 689.24 77.53 UNS C71700(estimated) MRC Polymers 53.8 53.8 2 1690 1.1 106.74 97.04 EMAREX 308High Impact Modified Nylon 6

TABLE 1d Ultimate Yield Tensile Young's Toughness/ Stress StrengthElongation Modulus Density Toughness Density Material (MPa) (MPa) atBreak (MPa) (g/cm) (MPa) (J/g) Ensilon 6/6 85.49 85.49 0.9 2827 1.1475.65 66.36 Xenoy 1103 52 50 1.5 1900 1.2 75.82 63.18 Xenoy 1101 53 591.2 2040 1.21 66.43 54.9 Xenoy 5720 50 50 1.65 1720 1.17 81.77 69.89Lexan 141 62 69 1.3 2340 1.2 84.24 70.2 304 steel 215 505 0.7 196000 8251.72 31.47 Kevlar 3620 3620 0.04 70300 1.44 37.12 25.78 302 Steel 255585 0.57 193000 7.86 239.01 30.41

Example 2

A sample sheet of body armor was constructed according to the armorassembly embodiment shown in FIG. 22A-C using approximately 3×3 inchsquare, 20 ply HB50 Dyneema SAP plates. For the GPPs armor plates,approximately 2 inch wide HB50 Dyneema armor plates with “T” shapes,such as, e.g., those as shown in FIGS. 16 and 17 were used. These GPPplates with 20 plies had a thickness of approximately 5 mm. For the IHCarmor plates, HB50 20 ply Dyneema, octagonally shaped IHCs (similar tothat shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B were attached over the holes. TheDyneema plates were manufactured by Tencate. The rope coupling elementused to connect the plates in the armor assembly was Spectra 1.6 mmdiameter cord from RW Rope Warehouse. The sample armor assemblysuccessfully protected against a 44 Magnum Semi Jacketed hollow point atNIJ Level IIIA. This is a Level IIIA Protection Level according to theNational Institute of Justice Ballistic Resistance of Body Amor NIJStandard-0101.06.

Various embodiments of the invention have been described. These andother embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.

1. An armor assembly comprising: a plurality of armor plates; and atleast one coupling element that couples the plurality of armor plates toeach other, wherein the plurality of armor plates are coupled to eachother via the at least one coupling element at discrete locations oneach armor plate to form a discontinuous armor layer.
 2. The armorassembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of plates forming thediscontinuous layer includes a first plurality of plates forming a firstdiscontinuous layer and a second plurality of plates forming a seconddiscontinuous layer overlaying at least a portion of the firstdiscontinuous layer.
 3. The armor assembly of claim 2, wherein the firstplurality of plates define a first gap portion in the firstdiscontinuous layer, wherein the second plurality of plates forming thesecond discontinuous layer overlays at least a portion of the first gapportion.
 4. The armor assembly of claim 2, wherein the plurality ofplates forming the discontinuous layer includes a third plurality ofplates forming a third discontinuous layer overlaying at least a portionof the second discontinuous layer.
 5. The armor assembly of claim 4,wherein the second plurality of plates define a second gap portion inthe second discontinuous layer, wherein the third plurality of platesforming the third discontinuous layer overlays at least a portion of thesecond gap portion.
 6. The armor assembly of claim 5, wherein the first,second, and third discontinuous layers combine to form a continuouslayer with substantially no gaps extending through the continuous layeralong a substantially linear path.
 7. The armor assembly of claim 2,wherein the first plurality of plates of the first discontinuous layerand the second plurality of plates of the second discontinuous layer aremechanically coupled to each other via the at least one rope.
 8. Thearmor assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of armor platescomprising one or more of aramid, polyethylene, ceramic, carbonnanotubes, or metallic alloy.
 9. The armor assembly of claim 1, whereinthe at least one coupling element comprises one or more of aramid,polyethylene, nylon, or metallic wire.
 10. The armor assembly of claim1, wherein each of the plurality of armor plates includes at least onecoupling aperture, wherein the at least one rope extends through the atleast one coupling aperture of the plurality of plates to mechanicallycouple the plurality of plates to each other.
 11. The armor assembly ofclaim 1, wherein each of the plurality of armor plates includes aplurality of coupling apertures dispersed around a perimeter of thearmor plate.
 12. The armor assembly of claim 1, wherein the armorassembly may substantially conform to a surface having a radius ofcurvature greater than 30 mm.
 13. The armor assembly of claim 1, whereinthe plurality of armor plates comprise a ceramic material and the atleast one coupling elements comprise polyethylene or aramid fiber ropes.14. The armor assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of armor platescomprise multiple layers, wherein respective layers includeunidirectional fibers held together in a binder.
 15. The armor assemblyof claim 14, wherein the unidirectional fibers comprise polyethylene oraramid.
 16. The armor assembly of claim 1, wherein a thickness the firstplurality of plates is between approximately 2 mm and approximately 30mm.
 17. The armor assembly of claim 1, wherein the armor assembly maysubstantially conform to a surface having a radius of curvature lessthan 300 mm.
 18. An armor assembly comprising: a first discontinuousarmor layer including of a first plurality of armor plates; a seconddiscontinuous armor layer including of a second plurality of armorplates; a third discontinuous layer armor including of a third pluralityof armor plates; and at least one coupling element that couples thefirst, second, and third plurality of armor plates to each other to format least a portion of the armor assembly.
 19. The armor assembly ofclaim 18, wherein the first, second, and third plurality of armor platesare coupled to each other via the at least one coupling element atdiscrete locations on respective armor plates.
 20. The armor assembly ofclaim 18, wherein the second discontinuous layer is between the firstand third discontinuous layers.
 21. The armor assembly of claim 18,wherein the second plurality of armor plates covers less than about 60percent of a total area covered by the armor assembly and the thirdplurality of armor plates covers less than about 40 percent of the totalarea covered by the armor assembly.
 22. The armor assembly of claim 18,wherein the second plurality of plates covers gaps between the firstplurality of plates, and the third plurality of plates covers gapsextending through the first and second plurality of plates.
 23. Thearmor assembly of claim 18, wherein the first, second and thirddiscontinuous layers are adjacent to each other and are positionedrelative to each other such that no gap exists in the armor layersdefining a substantially linear path through all of the discontinuouslayers.
 24. The armor assembly of claim 18, wherein at least one of thefirst, second, and third plurality of armor plates forming the first,second and third arrays of armor plates have a shape that isnon-identical from the other of the first, second, and third pluralityplates.
 25. The armor assembly of claim 24, wherein the at least onecoupling element traverses substantially vertically through the firstand second discontinuous layers armor plates to connect the first andsecond plurality of plates together, and wherein the at least onecoupling element traverses substantially vertically through the secondand third discontinuous layers of armor plates to connect the second andthird plurality of plates together.
 26. The armor assembly of claim 18,wherein the first, second, and third discontinuous armor layers defineone or more continuous pathways configured to allow air flow through thearmor assembly.
 27. A method comprising coupling a plurality of armorplates to each other via at least one coupling element, wherein theplurality of armor plates are coupled to each other via the at least onecoupling element at discrete locations on each armor plate to form adiscontinuous armor layer.
 28. The method of claim 27, wherein theplurality of armor plates comprise a first, second, and third pluralityof armor plates, and the discontinuous armor layer comprises first,second, and third discontinuous armor layers, wherein coupling theplurality of armor plates to each other via at least one couplingelement comprising coupling the first, second, and third plurality ofarmor plates to each other via the at least one coupling element to formthe first, second, and third discontinuous armor layers, and wherein thefirst armor layer includes the first plurality of armor plates, thesecond armor layer includes the second plurality of armor plates, andthe third armor layer includes the third plurality of armor plates. 29.The method of claim 27, wherein first, second, and third discontinuouslayers combine to form a continuous layer with substantially no gapsextending through the continuous layer along a substantially linearpath.